Black Cat #1
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeBlack Cat #1 (June 2019) holds the distinction of being Felicia Hardy's first-ever ongoing solo series in her four-decade Marvel history, ending a long wait during which she had existed almost entirely as a supporting character in Spider-Man titles. Writer Jed MacKay used the debut issue to establish a distinct heist-thriller identity for the character, positioning her as a morally independent antihero with her own crew, her own criminal rivals, and her own corner of the Marvel Universe. The issue also introduced Sonny Ocampo to the Marvel canon and set in motion the New York Thieves Guild conflict—with Odessa Drake as antagonist—that would define the series' entire narrative arc. Its three-story format, mixing a main heist plot with a flashback backup illuminating the Black Fox's criminal mentorship of Walter Hardy and Castillo Drake, signaled MacKay's ambition to build a fully realized world around Felicia rather than simply orbit Spider-Man.
In "Thieves Like Us," Black Cat kicks off her 2019 series with a high-stakes heist that goes sideways when her crew steals a prized painting without clearing it with the Thieves Guild. With Odessa Drake and exhibition security chief Sonny Ocampo hot on her trail, Felicia finds herself outmaneuvered—until an unexpected encounter with her father’s old mentor, the enigmatic Black Fox, throws her plans into deeper uncertainty. Written by Jed MacKay and illustrated by Travel Foreman, with vibrant colors by Brian Reber and sharp lettering by Ferran Delgado, the issue’s dynamic art and tight pacing set the tone for a story where trust is the rarest currency. The cover by J. Scott Campbell captures Felicia’s cool confidence and the tension of a game where everyone’s playing for keeps.
In "Thieves Like Us," Felicia Hardy—known as the Black Cat—teams up with her crew Boris Korpse and Bruno Grainger for a high-stakes art heist, only to find herself at odds with the Thieves Guild and their enforcer Odessa Drake. With security director Sonny Ocampo hot on her trail and an unexpected encounter with her father’s old mentor, the Black Fox, Felicia must navigate shifting loyalties before the next move in a game she never saw coming.
In "Leaving Miami," Jo finds herself caught in a high-stakes gamble with Dracula, where the real prize isn’t the money—but the moment she can vanish into the night. As she speeds away from the glittering chaos of Miami with Walter Hardy and Castillo Drake, the city’s neon glow fades behind them, and something far darker begins to stir in the rearview.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
The series was announced in 2019 with Jed MacKay as writer and Travel Foreman as the primary artist, spun directly out of MacKay's preceding work on Amazing Spider-Man tie-in stories and his Marvel digital originals. Editor Nick Lowe shepherded the launch, and the oversized debut issue featured interior art from multiple hands—Michael Dowling and Nao Fuji contributing alongside Foreman—to support its three distinct story segments. MacKay later acknowledged that the first volume's conclusion after twelve issues was shaped in part by disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic, which cut short a story arc that was roughly three-quarters complete at the time of cancellation.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First-ever ongoing solo series starring Black Cat (Felicia Hardy), published June 5, 2019 by Marvel Comics.
- Written by Jed MacKay with interior art by Travel Foreman, Michael Dowling, and Nao Fuji; cover by J. Scott Campbell; edited by Nick Lowe.
- First appearance of Sonny Ocampo, a security consultant working for Odessa Drake, who becomes a recurring figure in the series.
- The main story features Black Cat, with her crew Dr. Boris Korpse and Bruno Grainger, stealing a painting while clashing with the New York Thieves Guild and its leader Odessa Drake.
- A backup story set in the past reveals Black Fox running a con against Dracula in Miami alongside his students Walter Hardy (Felicia's father) and Castillo Drake (Odessa Drake's father), using Ulysses Bloodstone as an unwitting distraction—laying retroactive foundation for the series' central family rivalries.
- The issue includes a 'Marvel Meow' short by Nao Fuji, a whimsical strip that became a recurring feature throughout the series.
- Odessa Drake, the primary antagonist of the issue and the series, had her first appearance in Amazing Spider-Man (2018) #8—not in this issue.
- The first five issues were collected in the trade paperback Black Cat Vol. 1: Grand Theft Marvel; the full MacKay run across both volume numberings was later collected in the Black Cat by Jed MacKay Omnibus.
Cast · 12 characters
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Reprints
Reprinted in Black Cat #1 (2019), Black Cat by Jed Mackay Omnibus #[nn] (2023)
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